Silicon Valley Nation: What are the most-innovative countries?

Few surprises, but the global appetite for protectionism is high, while education, investment are concerns.

bf sv nation global innovation barometer
SAN FRANCISCO--The usual suspects, is the answer to that headline
question (more on this later). But more telling from a new global
innovation survey is how confused executives worldwide can be when
asked about a number of important business-innovation drivers.

That's the take-away from the third Global Innovation Barometer,
backed by GE. In GE's parlance, that confusion is "innovation
vertigo... an uneasiness with the changing dynamics of todayís
business landscape and uncertainty over the best path forward."

For instance, executives respond favorably in the survey to
questions about global collaboration and open markets but they're
also keen to exploit the advantages of their country's protectionist
policies, according to the survey.

Seventy-one percent of executives reported that their government
should push domestic innovation rather than imported, while 71
percent said their governments should open markets further and
promote imported innovation and investment.

Paradoxically, there was
a 53 percent overlap between these two opposing views, according to
the report. Mexico (76 percent favoring) and Turkey
(54 percent) favor more domestic protection. Then again Mexico
(62 percent) leads countries favoring open market as well, followed
by India (49 percent).

And nearly one in three believes that "by creating more competition
among businesses and making some products and services obsolete,
innovation has a negative impact" on their economy. Turkey
(66 percent) and India (53 percent) are the most-worried; Germany
(14 percent) and Canada (15 percent) are the least.

Author, educator and technologist Vivek Wadwha, writing
about the survey in the Washington Post, said, "Itís
clear to me from the GE study that companies may have become more
fearful of the future, but are really confused about what lies ahead
and what they and governments should do."